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David Adelman | David Adelman Morgan Stanley SECOND TEAM Christine Farkas Merrill Lynch THIRD TEAM Sunil (Nik) Modi UBS RUNNERS-UP Judy Hong Goldman Sachs |
The “finest consumer analyst on the Street” is how one portfolio manager describes David Adelman of Morgan Stanley, who tops the sector for a sixth year in a row. Adelman, 41, upgraded Reynolds American of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, in July, at $45.24, believing that the cigarette manufacturer’s shares had been unfairly beaten down. The stock soared 25.2 percent over the following six weeks before starting to slip, but it was still up 9.5 percent as of mid-September. During the same period the sector climbed 7.5 percent. Leaping from runner-up to second place is Christine Farkas, who “hustles and calls it like it is,” according to one buy-side client. The Merrill Lynch analyst initiated coverage of newly independent Philip Morris International in March with a buy recommendation, deeming the stock a bargain at $49.73. By mid-September shares of the New York–based cigarette manufacturer had wafted up 7.9 percent, to $53.68. Sunil (Nik) Modi of UBS, who debuts in third place, “is quietly setting the benchmark against which all others should be measured,” cheers one client. Modi upgraded UST in June, at $53.04, saying that the Stamford, Connecticut–based smokeless-tobacco company was an attractive acquisition target. Last month, Altria Group announced it would purchase UST for $10.3 billion; the latter’s shares had zoomed to $67.94 by mid-September.
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